BOSTON – With Jaylen Brown unable to play, some thought the already undermanned Boston Celtics would be easy pickings for the 76ers.
That was far from the truth, as the Celtics were anything but helpless.
If fact, the Sixers could have used some bodies, as Boston took a 117-101 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Monday night at TD Garden.
“I think they came ready to play, and we were very rusty,” said Ben Simmons, whose squad had been idle since last Tuesday. “We just got smacked multiple times and we didn’t react.